good morning. breaking overnight, march madness. southern california getting pounded with heavy rain overnight and more set to fall today more in one day than the area normally sees in a year. threats of mud slides and floods while heavy snow gets ready to hit the rest of e country and a huge avalanche slams into a residential neighborhood in montana. this morning we're on top of it all. ukraine unraveling. armed russian forces take control of a key airport in one part of the country. russian troops pouring in as president obama warns there will be consequences. are we headed for a new cold war with russia? andcountdown to the oscars.

the movie awards are one day away, and we're starting the party early with a look at the real-life scandal behind one of the oscar-nominated movies, plus, an oscar quiz we can guarantee you've never seen before, our way of joining in the excitement for the movie industry's biggest awards show, today, saturday, march 1st, 2014. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with lester holt and erica hill, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. good morning, welcome back to "today" on a saturday morning. >> welcome back to you. >> welcome back. >> i haven't said that in a while! it's like, yeah, welcome to the "today" show. oh, yes, i'm lester holt. >> you are lester holt. >> and erica hill alongside jenna wolfe and dylan dreyer, and it is march 1st, and we're still staring winter in the eye. >> you're having a hard time wrapping your head around this. all morning. did you guys hear it's march 1st? all morning this has been going on.

>> and i thought winter was over. >> that's the start of meteorological spring, march, april, may. that's what we call spring, even though it doesn't feel like it. >> if only you could wave your magic meteorological wand and make it happen. >> that would an amazing. >> great to have the group back together. missed you guys. our top story, another day of misery for the residents of southern california. the latest winter storm has drenched the state that needs relief from a record drought, but not like this. now californians are dealing with mud slides, and today they're expected to be soaked with a year's worth of rain in just 24 hours. miguel almaguer is standing by in los angeles to tell us more. miguel, good morning. >> reporter: lester, good morning. this is the l.a. river behind me. just on thursday, there was no water in it. it was fairly dry. today it is several feet high. it's a good example of just how quickly the water level has risen here in california. we've got our strongest storm over the last three years over the last few days. we had up to an inch an hour yesterday. that is a powerful storm here, too much rain for california.

as you know, we're in extreme drought here, but we were not prepared for a storm of this magnitude and of this size. the storm has triggered several warnings, flash flooding as well as mud slide warnings in the neighborhood of azuza, california, which is about 30 miles outside of los angeles. they had to issue mandatory evacuations for about 1,000 homes that are on the bottom of a mountainside that was burned by the colby fire in january. it's a very sticky situation up there because all of that loose mud and debris could slide right into the backyards of homes. as a matter of fact, yesterday, we could see that beginning to happen. there were water rescues all across this region up and down the state. there were backups on freeways that lasted for up to 20 to 30 miles. and there was delays just about everywhere. in a couple of neighborhoods, we had roo that collapsed and buildings that had some serious damage. so, it's certainly a very dangerous situation here, lester. we'll keep you updated as the day pushes on, because we expect more rain all across california today, lester. >> all right, miguel almaguer,

thanks very much. >> well, that storm that is pounding southern california will be wreaking havoc across the country over the next few days. dylan is here now with a look at just how bad this could get for folks. >> and it's a classic, you know, too much, too soon. this big storm system is going to continue to churn and bring all of that rain on shore. you can see this area of low pressure. it almost, well, is just too big there. we are already looking at this huge storm system about to bring more rain and very gusty winds. we had reports in some of the higher elevations of wind gusts up around 90 miles per hour, but look at just how much rain we're going to see. already 3 inches on the ground, but we will see another 1 to 2 inches along the coast and in some of the foothills. that's 4 inches. again, all of that parched land cannot absorb all of that water. but watch as it develops into a snowstorm for parts of the midwest and then eventually the east coast as we go into especially sunday and monday. and we could end up with several inches of snow. topeka, kansas, could end up

with 10 inches. then as it moves eastward, we could see about 9 inches in columbus, ohio, and then further east, again, we could see several inches of snow, even in parts of philadelphia into new york city. 10 inches possible, but it's something we have to watch. it's still two days away and we still have to contend with that rain-snow line, so we'll keep an eye on it for you. lester? >> dylan, thanks very much. russian forces appear to be firmly in control of the crimea region of ukraine this morning with troops pouring in and the pro-russian prime minister there claiming he's controlling them. this comes a day after president obama warned russia it should stay out. bill neely is right in the middle of it all. bill, good morning. >> reporter: yes, lester, crimea's crisis has deepened overnight. armed troops have taken up position behind me outside crimea's parliament. ukraine is alleging that more russian troops arrived here overnight and that those russian troops are trying now to seize control of a missile base. from russia's president putin, silence.

from president obama, a warning. a military air base now in russian hands, troops manning the entrance, one of three airports now taken from ukrainian control. crimea's main airport is closed. armed, pro-russian forces protecting it, russian troops arriving by the planeload. ukraine says ten russian military transport planes arrived at this airport carrying men and ammution. in two 11 attack helicopters. ukraine's defense minister says 6,000 additional russian troops have arrived here. all of this after president obama warned russia not to intervene in ukraine. >> the united states will stand with the international community in affirming that there will be costs for any military intervention in ukraine. >> reporter: in crimea's capital, the pro-russian coup gathers pace. its new leader's announcing they

now control ukraine's army, navy and air force here. any commander who disappears, says the new prime minister, should leave. just beyond crimea's borders and along the frontier with ukraine, russia continues one of its biggest military exercises since the fall of the soviet union. 150,000 men maneuvering as president putin is now, to show their strength to the world. the streets of crimea are calm. the vote here to decide who should rule has been brought forward to the end of the month. within weeks, crimea, always pro-russian, could be free of ukrainian rule for good. -- give in to what it calls russian provocation and that its troops are ready to hit back, if necessary. i mean, i don't think there is a strong chance of any kind of clash with russian troops, but lester, this place is a tinder

box, the focus of a battle of wills now between east and west. lester. >> all right, bill neely for us this morning. thanks. time now for a look at the rest of the morning's top stories. >> and jenna has all of those for us. jenna, good morning. >> good morning. hi, everyone. three people are alive this morning after being buried for hours under an avalanche. a massive snowslide demolished a house, trapping an 8-year-old boy and an elderly couple under snow and debris friday in missoula. it took three long frantic hours of digging to pull the victims to safety. all were taken to the hospital. the elderly couple remain in critical condition. passengers and crew are safe on the ground today after a scare in the air. an american airlines flight hit a flock of birds on takeoff from dallas-ft. worth last night. the plane made an emergency landing with a damaged engine. none of the 123 passengers were injured. antigovernment protesters plan to square off with police in venezuela all weekend after a deadly protest friday. demonstrators unleashed rocks and molotov cocktails while

national guardsmen returned fire with rubber bullets. one guardsman was shot to death, bringing the death toll to 18 after three weeks of protests. and finally this morning, the longest name ever for a very cool basketball shot. minnesota's kevin laue called off the ball the alley-oop reverse can you believe i just did that dunk. check it out again. unfortunately -- >> wow. >> -- it happened during practice and did not count for more than zero points. >> lots of credibility. >> lots of credibility, yes. also, was he not wearing a shirt? >> a lot of chest bumping going on. >> yes, so i was going to say that leads to a lot of chest bumping as well. that was great, lester. >> thank you very much. dylan is back with the rest of the national forecast. hey, dylan. hey, guys. good morning. good morning, everyone. we are talking about really cold temperatures. 21 below in international falls, but it feels like 36 below. fargo's at minus 15. your windchill is minus 36 degrees. incredible numbers here. it's 7 below in billings,

montana, where they saw almost whiteout conditions recently. we are looking for high temperatures tod good morning. i'm meteorologist chuck bell. the sun is shining, we're off to a cold start this morning, winter storm watches have already been posted for the sunday night into monday morning time frame. in the old. teens and low 20s for out the door weather this morning, will warm only into the mid 20s by monday morning, mid 30s by lunchtime and afternoon highs today

>> and that is your latest forecast. erica? >> all right, dylan. thanks. with former secretary of state hillary clinton possibly pondering a potential run for president, thousands of pages of previously confidential documents from her husband's time in office were released on friday, offering a candid look at role she played back then. so, could that affect her future? kristen welker has the very latest for us this morning. kristen, good morning. >> reporter: erica, good morning to you. the national archives released about 4,000 pages of documents which include memos from the clinton white house on topics including health care, the u.s. economy and also the first lady's image. there's no doubt these documents will be heavily scrutinized as the former secretary of state, hillary clinton, considers running in 2016. known for her no-nonsense titude, hillary clinton's image was a source of political discussion during her husband's administration. according to the bill clinton-era documents released friday, there was an effort by the then first lady's staff to soften her in the public's eye.

the documents show her press secretary suggested mrs. clinton spend some time celebrating former first ladies, which may help round out her image. the aide even proposed that she appear on the popular '90s sitcom "home improvement." >> look at the size of that thing. >> reporter: amy parnes co-authored the book "hrc." >> they wanted her to warm up a bit, show the softer side of hillary clinton. i think that's something they're still struggling with. >> reporter: the other big topic in the documents? health care. >> health care reform and the need for it is bigger than any one person in our country. >> reporter: the former first lady chaired her husband's task force and, initially, there was optimism. an unsigned document that was catalogued from april 1993 reads, "the first lady's months of meetings with the congress has produced a significant amount of trust." for her part, secretary clinton expressed serious concerns about a universal mandate requiring people to buy health insurance, telling congressional democrats

in 1993, it could create "shock waves." >> people want to know what she thinks about health care. they want to know what she thinks about certain issues. >> reporter: meanwhile, the clinton machine has begun to kick into a higher gear. bill clinton has hit the midterm campaign trail, and hillary is making the rounds on the speaking circuit. this week appearing at the university of miami. when asked if she will change her current twitter status about her future from "tbd," she didn't bite. [ cheers and applause ] >> i'd really like to. but i have no characters left. >> reporter: not surprisingly, republicans are seizing on the documents as they begin their campaign against clinton, slamming her for opposing the universal mandate in the '90s and then supporting the president's health care law. the documents had been withheld, despite past requests under legal exceptions. those exceptions expired last year and the papers have been cleared for release. they're actually a part of a

broader set of 33,000 pages that could be made public over the next two weeks. erica. >> that is a lot to go through, 33,000 pages. kristen, thanks. >> of course, there's speculation we could see a matchup in 2016 between hillary clinton and new jersey governor chris christie. he, of course, has been embroiled in this whole bridge trafc jam controversy. and on that point, we are hearing for the first time some of the frustration from drivers who were stuck in that epic traffic jam after the governor's aides ordered the shutdown of traffic lanes leading into the george washington bridge. 911 tapes from those chaotic hours have been released, and stephanie gosk has the details. >> reporter: the anger and confusion can be heard in their voices. >> ft. lee traffic is a nightmare. >> the gw bridge is totally gridlocked. >> reporter: anyone unlucky enough to get stuck at the foot of the george washington bridge those four days last september will likely not forget it. a nightmare that we now know was deliberately created by a staffer for new jersey governor chris christie. friday, new jersey officials

released 28 hours of 911 calls and police radio dispatches recorded when school buses, emergency workers and thousands of drivers got stuck for hours. >> we're getting calls from irate motorists. >> reporter: emergency workers struggled to get to a school bus accident. dispatch warns them -- >> brace for impact. they just called in. port authority's got a school bus and a car accident eastbound just on the other side of the bridge. >> reporter: when the mayor of ft. lee complained about the traffic, christie's now-fired deputy chief of staff, bridget anne kelly, texted transportation official david wildstein. "is it wrong that i'm smiling? i feel badly about the kids, i guess." emergency officials say no one's life was in danger, but people in need of help had to wait, like a woman who called for an ambulance and then had to call again and again. >> it's an emergency and they're not still here. >> reporter: the official investigation into what motivated the lane closures and

who ordered them is still ongoing. multiple members of governor christie's staff have been subpoenaed, but nothing so far links back to the governor directly. >> some people are saying let's give the guy, you know, a chance. he's innocent until proven guilty, so let's not jump to conclusions yet. the investigation isn't concluded. >> reporter: christie says he was in the dark until the story broke in the press. his political future may depend on whether or not the voters believe him. for "today," stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. a big weight has been lifted off the shoulders of kerry kennedy this morning. the daughter of the late senator robert kennedy was acquitted on friday of charges of driving under the influence of a drug. as kennedy tries to put the case behind her, there are lingering questions this morning about why prosecutors pursued the case in the first place. ron allen has more details. >> reporter: after four days of testimony and a quick acquittal, kerry kennedy, 54, human rights activist and author, was

grateful it was over. >> i want to say thank you to the jury for returning this verdict. >> reporter: she is the daughter of rfk and ethel kennedy, now 85, with her through the trial. and the former wife of new york governor andrew cuomo. in july of 2012, on a suburban new york highway, kennedy allegedly sideswiped a truck, blew out a tire on her suv while driving to her gym. police later found her slumped over the wheel, her car stopped at a side road. at the time, kennedy claimed she had mistakenly taken a sleeping pill instead of a thyroid medication. >> i have no memory until i was stopped at a traffic light and a police officer was at my car door. >> reporter: but prosecutors had charged kennedy with a misdemeanor, driving while impaired, insisting that even though she had mixed up her medications, she still had committed a crime, but the jury disagreed, as did some analysts. >> but in this case, if, in fact, she made a mistake and was

not aware and did not intentionally take the pill and get behind the wheel, then she's not liable. she's not criminally liable. >> reporter: kennedy's lawyers accused prosecutors of taking the case to trial because she's a kennedy. >> we're just grateful that the jury saw through it all. >> reporter: in response, the district attorney said they prosecute 2,500 impaired driving cases each year, and "this case was treated no differently from any of the others." for "today," ron allen, nbc news, new york. this next story seems like something out of the movies, but it was all too real. a rookie detective in rhode island going deep under cover to bring down the new england mafia. it really happened, and two decades later, he can finally tell his story. here's andrea canning. >> reporter: from whitey bulger to the mob wives -- >> don't, don't. >> did i get her in the face? >> reporter: even after "the sopranos" -- >> johnny's in jail.

>> reporter: -- america's fascination with the mob is alive and well. for steven o'donnell, growing up in a blue-collar neighborhood in providence, rhode island, organized crime was a fact of life, and the patriarch of mob family was top dog. >> i was fascinated with organized crime. >> reporter: fascinated but determined to stay on the right side of the law. o'donnell started off as a maximum security prison guard, learning the language of the mobsters. >> without question, we work in the prison set me up for some type of success, because i could walk the walk, talk the talk. >> reporter: on one fateful day in 1994, on the steps of the providence courthouse, o'donnell, now an undercover cop, found himself face to face with harold tillinggast, a mob hit man out on parole. you seized the moment. >> i was coming to get a warrant signed unrelated. i saw him and i had to get rid of the warrants i had and then just talked to him. >> reporter: talked not like a cop but like a guy from the hood, convincing tillinggast

they had done time together. he just bought everything, hook, line and sinker? >> i convinced him i was an inmate. i knew what the cell block meant, knew what he did for work. >> reporter: and so began the big lie. o'donnell was foley now, steve foley, living someone else's life. he was now all in. >> i was a bookmaker for them, so to speak, i was a drug dealer. they thought i was buying large amounts of cocaine, large amounts of heroin and large amounts of pot, marijuana. >> reporter: six years in the shadows moving with mobsters, building a case, harold tillinggast was one thing, but his brother, jerry, was the big fish, running his brac@s from prison. at one point, foley protected him from the wiretaps in prison. >> from jerry's perspective, he basically took full ownership that steve foley, which is me, he's my guy, he pays me, and if they have a problem with that, have them some see me. >> reporter: armed with police testimony, along with the tapes, the photos and the documents,

the attorney general went after jerry and harold and other members of their mob family. >> he caught my brother sleeping. >> reporter: in a twist of irony, even jerry tillinghast had to respect what o'donnell pulled off. >> if the shoe's on the other foot, would i do the same thing? probably, you know? >> reporter: that same year, foley, now back to steven o'donnell, was honored by his peers and even the president. today, a picture hangs as a reminder of those six years under cover in the office of colonel steven o'donnell, now the head of the entire rhode island state police. for "today," andrea canning, nbc news, providence, rhode island. up next, couldn't get the game's gold medals, but i was able to bring erica, jenna and dylan some presents from sochi. >> warm weather! >> yeah, open the bag and it will be 70. the big back is for the person i love the most. that's next. now i have to figure out who i

really gave that to. this is "today" on nbc. whoops!

♪ it really is good to be back together here in new york, but i did a little bit of -- brought a little sochi along with me. >> you're kind of verklempt when you talk about it, too. >> i don't know why. i picked up a few special gifts for you while i was in russia. a lot of thought went into my -- what is wrong? >> are you nervous because you don't know who got the big present? >> no, because i made the big one and said it was my favorite person, but, anyway, this is for you. >> aww, i didn't get the big one. >> dylan. and this is for you, erica. and the size is not -- >> it's not about the size, yeah -- >> so, say it again, size is what? i didn't know. >> i stopped before it became a youtube clip. >> wow! >> anyway, let's see, so -- >> i can make cake and then cut it. >> dylan, yours is a commemorative cake spoon with a traditional russian design on it, because we know you like to cook. >> i do love to cook. >> and you got -- wait a minute, i have to catch up with what everybody's got.

you've got the set here. it's also a tea set because you like tea, right? >> i love tea. >> this is your tea thing. >> oh, i can't wait to -- ♪ i'm a little teacup, short and stout ♪ >> i love what you got. these are the most adorable things i've ever seen. >> baby booties. >> what are these made out of? is that bamboo? >> they look very comfortable. >> they're made of birch bark. birch is a symbol of money and these will bring wealth into your home. >> do they splinter? >> also, birch is the stuff that vodka i made was made of. >> the producer dee dee actually informed me you didn't actually get me a gift. you got my kid a gift -- >> but it brings wealth and you got a football, too. >> she's going to make money and then take care of you. >> anyway. >> thank you. thank you! >> but i couldn't bring the

good morning, i'm richard jordan, it's saturday, march 1. today police are looking into two separate death investigations in the district just after midnight. d.c. found a man dead from a head injury. this was near d street and ridge road in southeast. and then police found a man dead at e street. to the democrats running for d.c. mayor will hold their third forum this week. it is happening a at the josephine butler center at 2:00.

we will stream that forum on nbc washington.com. plan extra time if you are taking metro this weekend. metro is doing track work on four of its lines, trains could be running as many as 20 minutes apart on the red, blue and green lines. the service should be

good morning once again, i'm meteorologist chuck bell. winter storm watches are already posted for sunday night into monday morning. that's the time frame that we're watching out for. in the meantime, it's a cold, but sunny start to your weekend. teens and low 20s for out the door weather. highs today not too bad, still colder than average, but highs today generally in the low and mid 40s. decent amount of sunshine this morning, clouds coming in later this afternoon. tomorrow mostly cloudy by mild day, temperatures well into the

50s tomorrow. rain arrives sunday evening and rain likely to change over to snow by monday morning. watching that very, very carefully. richard, back in to you. >> we have got another news update in 25 minutes, but now let's go back to the "today" show. ♪ it's a beautiful day and i can't stop myself ♪ we are back on a saturday morning. it is the first day of march 2014. nice crowd out there on the plaza. they're braving some bitterly cold temperatures this morning, but they're generating a lot of heat on their own. >> big crowd. >> tell them we're in the heart of winter or on the brink of spring. dylan tells us meteorological -- i have to say that slowly -- spring has arrived. she also has the details on what you can expect in the first few days of march, which is decidedly not springlike. >> and it won't feel spring like maybe for weeks. >> no, but it's not dylan's fault, everyone. it's not her fault. she's just the messenger. coming up in this half hour, it might win best picture

tomorrow night at the oscars, "american hustle," the film about local corruption and double-dealing, was inspired by a real-life sting operation that rocked washington to its core. so, we thought this would be a perfect morning to give you the real-life story behind that film. then, she is an 87-year-old food critic who unwittingly became an internet sensation two years ago with her earnest review of her local chain restaurant, olive garden. she's since turned from breadsticks to what she calls a well-stocked salad bar. marilyn haggerty is here with her latest review of ruby tuesday. >> i love this lady. plus, if old man winter won't give up on us, well, maybe we'll just give up on him. we have some last-minute vacation deals for you out there that could have you basking in the sun in no time. >> if the airport would only open up from the snow. >> minor detail. before that, we begin with the latest controversy worlding seaworld. the orlando-based company recently came under fire after the release of the documentary "blackfish." it was a critical film about

killer whales in captivity. now seaworld is striking back, going after a government investigator who claims she was too friendly with the documentary's producers. nbc's mark potter explains. >> reporter: the complaint filed by seaworld parks and entertainment is the latest twist in a battle between the company and the makers of "blackfish," a documentary film released last summer that raises critical questions about whether orcas or killer whales should be held in theme parks to perform for audiences. >> all whales in captivity are all psychologically traumatized. >> reporter: the film features the 2010 fatal attack at seaworld in orlando where a huge orca named tilikum grabbed his 40-year-old trainer, dawn brancheau, and dragged her under water, where she drowned. in its complaint to the u.s. labor department, seaworld alleges that laura padgett, the complaints officer assigned by osha to investigate the death was biased, had a "desire to

damage seaworld as a viable business" and is an animal rights activist who "de lossed confidential seaworld documents" to the filmmakers. laura padgett could not be reached for comment, but osha, her employer, told nbc news it referred the allegations to the inspector general's office back in january when they first surfaced. osha now awaits the results of that investigation. the director of "blackfish," gabriella cowperthwaite says "lara padgett didn't give me confidential documents for blackfish, no confident osha documents are used in blackfish," and the author of "death at seaworld" argues the company is off base attacking padgett. >> i think they're doing it out of self-defense. i think they're doing it out of trying to create a picture where they were unfairly treated. but i don't think that those allegations are fair or accurate. >> reporter: a heated controversy following a trainer's death four years ago, showing no signs of letting up. for "today," mark potter, nbc news, miami.

all right, let's get outside now and talk to dylan about the latest forecast. dylan? >> hey, guys! and i am surrounded by blue people. are you cold or is this for a special cause? >> both. >> both, all right. so, what's going on here? you're the only ones not blue. join us on march 23. >> we're launching our awareness campaign, so encourage everybody, get screened. >> i want one of those. we are looking at some very cold temps around here, but on the west coast, that's the big story, it's the radar and you can see heavy rain just south of san francisco. this is a huge storm system that's not only bringing heavy rain, but it's also bringing very gusty winds, that is going to continue to bring mudslides.

temperatures right now are well down below zero with your windchills even colder. it's actually about 40 to 50 degrees below average for this time of year. this is just the winter that won't quit. that's a look at the weather across the country, now here's a peek out your window. >> good morning, i'm meteorologist chuck bell, we do have winter storm watches up for sunday night into monday morning. but anything you need to get done this weekend will be very weather cooperative. temperatures right now are in the teens and low 20s so a cold start for sure. we'll be in the mid 20s here by 9:00 a.m., mid 30s by lunchtime, and highs this afternoon low and mid 40s with increasing clouds later on this afternoon, then tomorrow, a much milde ♪ and let's head over to missouri for "today's top spot," where it's cold there, too. it comes from our affiliate. it's the true falls film

festival. it's one of the country's few nonfiction film festivals. it features more than 40 films. there's also live music at every screening and a chance to talk with the filmmakers. so, sounds like a nice indoor event out there in columbia, missouri. erica? >> i like the emphasis on indoor. dylan, thanks. meantime, speaking of movies, the movie "american hustle" is certainly getting a lot of buzz these days, nominated for ten academy awards, including best picture. and while the film is billed as fiction, it is loosely based on a scandal that shook congress to its core back in 1980. chuck todd has the story of the real "american hustle." ♪ >> reporter: oscar hopeful, "american hustle," seems like a mad cap caper that only hollywood could invent. >> who's running this? i thought you were running this. >> i am, but you have to listen to him. he's the guy with the vision. >> reporter: in fact, it's based on a real american hustle, an fbi sting called abscam that engulfed congress in 1980. >> the biggest political scandal to hit washington since watergate. >> reporter: and it was the first made-for-tv scandal re new jersey, and of course, here

in washington, d.c., where two congressmen, frank thompson and john murphy, were caught on tape taking bribes in this very house, a house that the fbi was renting from an unsuspecting "washington post" reporter. the tapes produced memorable moments, including congressman ozzie myers uttering these infamous words -- >> money talks in this business, and bull [ bleep ] talks. it's the same way in washington." >> reporter: to this day, myers says he and other lawmakers were entrapped by the fbi. >> no one was ever predisposed to any kind of criminal activity. >> reporter: the u.s. attorney in new jersey during abscam who worked on the case sort of agrees, calling the operation unsavory. >> the politicians disgraced themselves by going before the camera, but the justice department disgraced itself as well. they didn't control this investigation, and they let weinberg run rampant on it. >> reporter: today, anscam's not just another black mark on washington, now it's part of hollywood mythology. for "today," chuck todd, nbc hollywood mythology. for "today," chuck todd, nbc news, washington.

and a twenty-megapixel sensor. it's got the brightest display, so i can see what i'm shooting -- even outdoors, and 4 mics that capture incredible sound. plus, it has apps like vine -- and free cloud storage. my new lumia icon is so great, even our wipeouts look amazing. ♪ honestly, i want to see you be brave ♪ ♪ i've been claritin clear for 6 amazdays. at the first sign of my allergies, my dtor recommended taking one claritin every day of my allergy season for continuous relief. 21 days of relief from itchy, watery eyes. 28 days of continuous relief from sned nny nose, since i've been taking claritin every day of my allergy season. get the #1 doctor recommended non-drowsy allergy brand. live claritin clear. every day. stock up with claritin bonus packs for spring! available at walmart for a low price, every day. when you just know.ne... new almay smart shade makeup made it easy with just three skintone-adjusting shades to choose from...

not hundreds. hot breakfast options. hampton, enjoy our free you did a great job. it looks good! then fuel up with up to 9,000 hhonors bonus points on a long weekend stay. make every stay more rewarding and feel the hamptonality.

clouds later on this afternoon. and tomorrow looks like a nice day too, much milder, way into the 50s tomorrow, rain likely tomorrow night, changing to snow monday morning. we're going to be following this one real close. >> we have got another news update in 25 minutes. good morning. it's saturday, march 1st, 2014. here's a look at today's top stories. march madness. driving rain in southern california overnight. more set to fall today. threats of mud slides and floods while heavy snow gets set to pound much of the rest of the country. this morning we're covering it all. ukraine unraveling. ukrainian border guard vessels on alert in the crimea region, this after armed russian forces take control of a key airport in one part of the country, and president obama warns there will be consequences. could it lead to a new cold war? and countdown to the oscars. the academy awards are a day away. we're starting the party early, though, with a looky friend.

>> i am just already planning my next trip, yeah. monday we are looking at some pretty significant snowfall accumulation up and down the east coast, stretching back to the midwest, but we are focused today on the stormy west, especially down through southern california, where we could still deal with that mud slide danger. another several inches of rain is possible, obviously creating flooded roads and mountain snow as well. look at some of the rainfall totals we're still expecting. after nearly 3 inches of rain fell yesterday, we could see another 1 to 2 inches of rain along the coast. the foothills could end up with 4 inches of rain as this stream of moisture comes in off the pacific, heavy rain approaching san francisco. we've even had reports of thunderstorms and very intense wind gusts, too. this storm system will merge with this other one through the middle of the country, producing mostly ice and snow through the midwest. this storm still needs to be watched, because the track of this storm determines just how much snowfall the east coast sees, as opposed to mixing in with a little rain, so that's something we'll keep an eye on.

ws. >> love that. >> i'm thrilled when i find a crumpled $10 in jeans. >> guy found a million dollar bill, basically. >> maybe we should be friends with him. let's head to the plaza now where dylan has a check of our forecast. dylan, g

and should be read and considered carefully before investing. for a current prospectus visit www.etrade.com/mutualfunds. it's the biggest night in hollywood. we're talking about the oscars, of course. >> that's right. and i actually get to get in a little bit of the fun tomorrow. looking forward to that. i'll be in l.a. for you guys tomorrow morning. but before we do that, we thought we'd get a little action going with some preoscars trivia, which jenna has for us in the orange room. >> all right, guys, here is the deal, how well do you know this year's nominees? or in other words, did you watch any of this year's nominees? don't answer that. we're going to find out right now. so, we've got a little quiz for you. just take your best shot here, whether you've seen the movie or not. first question -- which best picture nominee not based on a true story? "dallas buyers club," "wolf the wall street" -- >> "nebraska." >> you guys are all guessing. what'd you say it was? >> "nebraska." >> mr. know it all. nice, lester. keep it going, here

history. >> i think leonardo dicaprio and matthew mcconaughey are the nominees. mcconaughey has the edge. >> but judging them on how far they had come. >> that's what i love about these high school girls, man. >> this is bubble yum bubble gum. >> i think leo wins the race. >> after all, his "growing pains" were documented for the world to see. jennifer lawrence may be the youngest actress to nab three oscar nominations, but who knew it was this "my super sweet 16" commercial that landed her a s.a.g. card at 14? she's not the only starlet who got a start on mtv. front-runner lupita nyong'o did, too, in the soap opera-like show "suga." but hey, that's the thing about show business, you've got to start somewhere. yeah, and there's so many other actors we didn't get to mention. it wasn't too long ago jonah hill was playing the silly sidekick. and who could forget about jordan catalano,

you will make a huge difference. so, every night, the four of us e-mail the group our food diary, so we're all accountable over time. then you stop making bad food choices, because other people are reading your diary. it worked for the three of us. lester lost 300 pounds. so, here's the deal. remember, guys, this is a journey towards a healthier you. it's not a sprint. so, please be patient. so, over the next month, i'm going to be sharing tons of tips here on the "today" show, also online, small changes and small things you can do, and this is how you can live a healthier life. go to today.com, sign up for the challenge. i promise, by the end of the month, you will definitely feel a difference. >> we've been doing that food diary, and it works. you reach for something unhealthy, you think, oh, but i'm going to have to write it down and then you guys will see it. >> half the time, you're just like, i don't feel like writing it down, so it's easier just not to have it. >> i also get great ideas for all of you guys. i hadn't thought about that for a snack or maybe i should put that in a salad. it's a great motivator, jenna. we're excited about it.

>>l to." so, to help us play, we've brought in guest judge sunny anderson, co-host of the food network's "the kitchen." sunny, good morning. good to see you. >> thank you. >> good morning. >> i'll have you know i'm wearing a pant suit in honor of ellen degeneres. >> i love it. >> and i love your red shoes. >> very nice. >> it's working. >> i'm wearing iza mendez, so just so you know. so, you guys ready for this? >> i'm ready. >> first explain the rules. >> please, go over the rules. >> the rules are, you have several dishes here. each one of them is based on a movie inspired by one of this year's best picture nominees. so, you're going to give us the clues. >> yes. >> we have buzzers here. they've been regulated, sort of. >> thanks to bob in the back. >> right, thank you, bob. the first one of us who hits the buzzer and answers correctly wins a point. sunny, all yours. >> all right, so i asked that you contestants let me finish the clue before you guess the movie. are you ready for "and the food goes to"? >> ready. >> yes. >> ready. >> hands on your buzzers. okay, the first clue is, this is clams casino.

this morning, concern about a rise in homicides in the districts as we learn of another case that just happened today. >> hey, also new this morning, some brand-new alerts just issued as we brace for another round of winter weather. >> thank you for joining us. all is clear now, but the entire region is os